My Fanime 2010 schedule

I am finishing up the last image scans and note edits for my panels at Famine Con 2010 in San Jose. 

I hope to see some of you there.

My panel schedule (presently) is:

Friday:
7 PM - Anime for Parents (No badge required) 

Saturday:
3 PM - Anime and manga for Grownups
10 PM - The Sex Trade in Anime and Manga (18+) 

Sunday:
10 AM - Noon - Older Titles for Newer Fans (With Jonathan Osborne)

 The full schedule can be downloaded at: 

http://www.fanime.com/docs/2010-schedule.pdf

Authority figures with legs

This week I cover a particular expression of Japanese respect and love of authority, the miniskirt police.

minisuka porisu (miniskirt police) ミニスカポリス

This is not an easy one to research as so little has been done in English on the subject. In fact my only source was a most excellent book which I highly recommend: The Otaku Encyclopedia by Patrick Galbraith.

Big head

Ever wander out of the West Gate of Shibuya Station in Tokyo and wonder what the heck that large head is?

Here you go:

Moyai-zo (moyai statue) モヤイ像

Midori Sawato and the art of benshi

Midori Sawato's voice is one I'm familiar with. I own several silent Japanese movies on DVD where she does the benshi work that enlivens these great films.

The Japan Times has a good article on her "Carrying on the art of silent film narration". She has even appeared in US venues such as the Pacific Film Archives in Berkeley.

If you wish to get DVD discs of Japanese silent films with benshi accompanyment you can do so from Digital Meme. Hum, there are some titles I have yet to get, think I'll place an order.

This ain't no mushroom drink

This week I am adding another beverage entry.

This one for a seaweed based drink.

konbucha (konbu tea aka seaweed tea) 昆布茶

I'll have to check to see if the local Japanese markets have this in stock in the usual powdered form.

Hot fun in 1970

Last week I was almost ready to upload this entry to the Anime Companion Supplement but could not find some crucial information.

I searched my books, then the databases I have access to through work, I searched those at San Francisco Public Library and then I turned to Google Books. There I found an ad in Life magazine for 1970 for a book. Thank God for used book dealers, in less than a week I had a copy in my hands.

Now complete I give an entry on:

Nihon bankoku hakuran-kai (Japan World Exposition aka Expo '70) 日本万国博覧会

Damn the future looked cool back then!